Cdn-Firearms Digest Saturday, October 15 2011 Volume 14 : Number 717 In this issue: NRA's LaPierre: 'Fast and Furious' Was Plot Against Second Amendment Dr. Caillin Langmann Study: Gun control, homicide rates not linked WASH. TIMES: Steps to gun ownership in D.C. By Emily Miller NRA-ILA GRASSROOTS ALERT 'Unacceptable' Proposal to Ban Target Shooting on ... Re: Beware of hang-fires! - VIDEO CBC - Environmentalist shocked by caribou shooting What Are We Paying For? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 15 Oct 2011 10:34:13 -0600 From: "Joe Gingrich" Subject: NRA's LaPierre: 'Fast and Furious' Was Plot Against Second Amendment http://www.newsmax.com/Headline/LaPierre-NRA-gunrunning-fastandfurious/2011/10/14/id/414545?sl&promo_codeÔ41-1 NRA's LaPierre: 'Fast and Furious' Was Plot Against Second Amendment By Martin Gould and Ashley Martella Friday, 14 Oct 2011 The government-sanctioned gunrunning operation, Fast and Furious, was a plot to undermine Second Amendment rights in the United States, National Rifle Association president Wayne LaPierre charged on Friday in an exclusive interview with Newsmax.TV. "It's the only thing that makes any sense," LaPierre said. "Over a period of two or three years they were running thousands and thousands of guns to the most evil people on earth. At the same time they were yelling '90 per cent. of the guns the Mexican drug cartels are using come from the United States.' "That was a phony figure from the very start. Even the Wikileaks cables from our own State Department prove they are coming from Central America, they are not coming from the U.S. Every police officer will tell you that they're coming from Russia, they're coming from China, most of them are coming from Central America and a lot of them are coming from defections from the Mexican Army." But LaPierre said that President Barack Obama, Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton were determined to make it appear that most weapons used by the Mexicans came from north of the border, "so they could stick more gun legislation on honest American gun owners of the United States." LaPierre insisted that the whole Fast and Furious scandal, in which he said "thousands and thousands" of weapons were allowed to cross into Mexico, would never have come to light at all if it hadn't been for last December's murder of U.S. Border Agent Brian Terry in Arizona. "We wouldn't know about this at all if (Terry) had not been killed and some of the good, honest, decent federal agents down the line had enough of the stench coming out of Washington and started to use the Whistleblower Act to go public and call the Justice Department out on this whole rotten, stinking scheme. "Otherwise thousands of guns would still be going over the border into the Mexican drug cartels and the president and the attorney general and the secretary of state would all be running around going '90 percent of the guns come from America' in an attempt to seek political advantage and in an attempt to enact more gun control laws on honest American citizens and use this whole issue politically against the Second Amendment of the United States." LaPierre says Fast and Furious is the biggest cover-up since the Watergate scandal that brought down Richard Nixon in the early-1970s. "Look at what has happened," he said. "We had our Department of Justice under the Obama administration running thousands and thousands of guns over the border and watching them go directly into the hands of some of the most evil people on earth, the Mexican drug cartels. "At the same time they were letting the reputation of good, honest, decent Americans, law-abiding American gun dealers, be ruined. "They ordered these sales to be made, they even overrode the InstaCheck system and ordered the dealers to make the sales. Then, when it all starts coming out, there's a massive cover-up." He joined the chorus of Republican Congressmen calling for Holder to quit and for a special prosecutor to be appointed to investigate the entire scandal which has resulted in dozens of crimes committed both in the U.S. and in Mexico being committed with the smuggled weapons. "My gosh, Valerie Plame gets a special prosecutor," he said, referring to the CIA agent whose name was leaked during the George W. Bush presidency. "And all we get on Fast and Furious, where people are dead, a federal agent is dead, hundreds of crimes are being committed, is an Eric Holder cover-up. "They crossed the line. They need to be held responsible. We need to get to the bottom of this and the only way we are going to get to the bottom of it is a special prosecutor." He rebutted Democratic claims that subpoenas issued this week by the House Oversight Committee chairman Rep. Darrell Issa were nothing more than a politically motivated "fishing expedition." LaPierre said, "Do we really want our Department of Justice . running thousands of guns into the hands of the Mexican drug cartels? Running a massive campaign to manipulate public opinion? Ruining the lives of good, honest American citizens when they knew the truth, and then participating in a massive cover-up? "Doesn't that sound like something that would happen more from a South American dictatorship than what we expect in the Good Ol' USA? "This can't be allowed to stand. What has happened in Fast and Furious is the equivalent of our Justice Department becoming willing co-conspirators with the Mexican drug cartels in their crimes. If any citizen in this country had sold a gun to the Mexican drug cartels and then those cartels had used those guns to kill good, honest, decent people, any U.S. Attorney worth his salt would indict that citizen for accessory to murder. That's what's happened here." LaPierre said that re-electing Obama to a second term would destroy Second Amendment rights, claiming that his Supreme Court appointees would "erase the Second Amendment from the Bill of Rights and exorcise it from the Constitution of the U.S." But he said the NRA had not and will not endorse any individual GOP candidate. "All those candidates have positive records on the Second Amendment issues. We are not going to get into the Republican primaries," he said. "Our job is to protect the Second Amendment and that means that every gun owner, every Second Amendment supporter needs to do everything they can to make sure that President Obama does not get a second term so that he can destroy the Second Amendment. "This is the most dangerous election in our lifetime for the Second Amendment freedom that American citizens have. A second term by President Obama will break the back of that freedom in this country." ------------------------------ Date: Sat, October 15, 2011 10:43 am From: "Dennis & Hazel Young" Subject: Dr. Caillin Langmann Study: Gun control, homicide rates not linked Dr. Caillin Langmann on the Dave Rutherford Show Discussing gun control legislation in Canada, 2011-10-07 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0okhuGgZ9Q&feature=player_embedded ARTICLE REFERRED TO IN THE INTERVIEW NATIONAL POST - OCTOBER 5, 2011 Gun control, homicide rates not linked: study By Tristin Hopper http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/10/05/gun-control-homicide-rates-not-linked-study/#more-98150 ------------------------------ Date: Sat, October 15, 2011 10:49 am From: "Dennis & Hazel Young" Subject: WASH. TIMES: Steps to gun ownership in D.C. By Emily Miller THE WASHINGTON TIMES - OCTOBER 14, 2011 Steps to gun ownership in D.C. By Emily Miller http://www.washingtontimes.com/blog/guns/2011/oct/14/miller-steps-gun-ownership-dc/ My quest to get a legal handgun in Washington, D.C. feels daunting. I went to the D.C. Firearms Registration office two weeks ago to start the process of getting a legal gun by picking up a 22-page packet of forms and instructions. Since then, I've been overwhelmed by all that is required before I can take legal possession of a purchased gun. I needed to get organized, so I made a checklist of the required steps, bringing order to the complicated mess of instructions given by the city. I'm going to work my way down this list: 1) Fill out the eligibility form and get it notarized 2) Find a D.C.-certified instructor to sign up for a firearms safety course 3) Take four hours of classroom instruction and one hour of range instruction on safety and have the instructor fill out the compliance form 4) Provide proof that my vision is okay (my driver's license suffices, one down!) 5) Provide proof of residency (my license works, two down!) 6) Get two passport photos 7) Study D.C.'s laws and regulations for firearms (guide provided in the packet) 8) Pass a 20-question multiple choice test on No. 7 9) Be fingerprinted 10) Pay fees totaling $60 11) Buy the gun 12) Arrange with D.C.'s only legal gun broker, Charles Sykes, to transfer the gun (cost $125) to him 13) Have Mr. Sykes fill out the his section in the application for firearms registration certificate 14) Take all the applications requirements from above to the registration office 15) After the application is in, wait five days for the application to be approved 16) After the five days are up, wait another 5 days for Mr. Sykes to be legally allowed to release the firearm 17) Pick up the gun from Mr. Sykes and take it to the police department for a ballistics test If I pass all these tests, then I get the gun, but have to go straight home since it's illegal to carry in the city. So far, I've completed No. 4, 5, half of No. 1 (not yet notarized) and started on No. 2 by calling some instructors to sign up for a class. At this rate, I should be an owner of a legal handgun about the same time I'm eligible for Social Security. Next up in the series, who is eligible for a legal gun in D.C.... "Emily Gets Her Gun" is a new series following senior editor Emily Miller as she legally tries to get her hands on a gun in the nation's capital. You can also follow her quest on Twitter. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Oct 2011 10:49:12 -0600 From: "Joe Gingrich" Subject: NRA-ILA GRASSROOTS ALERT Excerpt: NRA-ILA GRASSROOTS ALERT Vol. 18, No. 42 10/14/11 U.S. House Committee Advances National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act http://www.nramedia.org/t/242308/7238398/7808/0/ This week, the House Judiciary considered amendments to H.R. 822, the National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Bill, and defeated all anti-gun amendments offered in an effort to weaken or gut the legislation. The legislation is an important pro-gun reform that will provide for the recognition of carry permits in all states that issue permits. (For detailed information on the legislation, click here.) The bill, as originally written, was successfully amended at the outset of the markup with a substitute that added a number of important protections. Foremost, it amended the language so that visitors to states that have laws requiring licenses just for possession of a handgun, do not need a possession license, which is often unavailable to nonresidents. Holder Subpoenaed in "Fast and Furious" Scandal : http://www.nramedia.org/t/242308/7238398/7809/0/ This week, House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) subpoenaed the Justice Department in the Fast and Furious scandal. The subpoena seeks documents and all communications between the office of Attorney General Eric Holder, his deputies, and the White House in connection with the now-infamous Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosive's failed operation. Internet Rumors About Cerberus, Freedom Group Are Patently False: http://www.nramedia.org/t/242308/7238398/7810/0/ Recently, an old rumor regarding Cerberus--the private equity firm that owns Freedom group, a holding company that in turn owns a number of firearms manufacturers, including Remington, Marlin, Bushmaster, and DPMS--was in some way tied to George Soros. Veteran's Second Amendment Rights Bill Passes U.S. House, Senate Companion Bill Introduced: As we previously reported, on September 9, the U.S. House Veterans Affairs Committee passed an amendment by U.S. Representative Denny Rehberg (R-Mont.) as a part of a larger piece of veterans' legislation. The "Veterans Second Amendment Protection Act," which was added to H.R. 2349 as an amendment, will provide individuals receiving veterans' benefits with added protection against loss of the right to possess firearms due to mental health decisions. Firearms Interstate Commerce Reform Act Introduced In U.S. Senate: http://www.nramedia.org/t/242308/7238398/7811/0/ U.S. Senators Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Mark Begich (D-Alaska) have introduced the Senate companion bill to H.R. 58, the "Firearms Interstate Commerce Reform Act," which was reintroduced in the U.S. House in January of 2011. This common sense reform to broaden lawful interstate sales of firearms has been an NRA priority for many years. Similar legislation has repeatedly been introduced in the Congress since 2004, when Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Ga.) introduced H. R. 4048, which was then titled the Firearm Commerce Modernization Act. Michelle Obama's Warning to Gun Owners: http://www.nramedia.org/t/242308/7238398/7813/0/ At a recent fundraiser for her husband's re-election campaign, first lady Michelle Obama told her audience: "We stand at a fundamental crossroads for our country. You're here because you know that in just 13 months, we're going to make a choice that will impact our lives for decades to come . let's not forget what it meant when my husband appointed those two brilliant Supreme Court justices . let's not forget the impact that their decisions will have on our lives for decades to come." This week, NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox wrote an excellent op-ed for the Daily Caller on the first lady's chilling comments and what they could potentially mean for the future. To read the piece, please click here. Another Way To Get Involved--Join NRA's Facebook And Twitter Groups: http://www.nramedia.org/t/242308/7238398/4498/0/ Internet social networking has exploded in recent years, and websites such as Facebook and Twitter attract millions of users. This on-line community fosters a connection between its users, and allows distribution of user-generated content (like pictures, profiles, music, video, and text). NRA has been a part of this social technology for some time now, with a presence on Facebook, Twitter, and other social networking sites. By actively participating in these new media, we are able to reach out to more potential members and supporters than ever before. The current king of on-line social networking is Facebook. NRA's Facebook page continues to be extremely popular. In fact, thanks to you, our page has grown from about 300,000 fans on July 28, 2010 to over 1,205,000 fans as of this week! ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Oct 2011 11:06:42 -0600 From: "Joe Gingrich" Subject: 'Unacceptable' Proposal to Ban Target Shooting on ... ... Western Parkland Gun Groups Decry 'Unacceptable' Proposal to Ban Target Shooting on Western Parkland By Judson Berger Published October 14, 2011| FoxNews.com Gun enthusiasts are rallying opposition to a string of new federal proposals that could close off hundreds of thousands of acres in the open West to target shooting. The proposals from the Bureau of Land Management potentially would outlaw target shooting in swaths of public land in Arizona and Colorado as part of a broader conservation planning effort. Federal officials said shooters are, under the proposals, being herded to different areas because of safety concerns and because -- at least in Arizona -- they've been leaving trash in public parks and damaging the environment with their bullets. But the National Rifle Association calls the bureau's response "unacceptable," and gun groups say the government doesn't need to go to such lengths to protect its open spaces. The land "is owned by the public, and it should be available to the public," said Ed Roberts, vice president of the Arizona State Rifle and Pistol Association. The most sweeping proposals are in southern Arizona, where the bureau has proposed closing the nearly 490,000 acres in the Sonoran Desert National Monument to shooting. The agency has offered several different proposals, including the option of making no changes, but the manager of the land said the preferred option would shut out shooters from the monument. "The monument's not an appropriate place to have recreational target shooting," said Richard Hanson, manager of the land. The government would still allow hunting, and Hanson stressed that more than 900,000 acres of federal land outside the monument would remain open for target practice. But Hanson said that in surveying the monument -- which was designated in 2001 -- officials found damage to rocks and cactus plants and other parts of the landscape near target-shooting sites, as well as tons of trash. "The amount of trash was fairly astounding," he said. But Roberts said he doesn't think sportsmen are responsible. He said he knows there's trash at the shooting sites but doesn't think the target shooters are the ones bringing it in. "I can't see a shooter bringing in a washing machine or a computer or bags of trash just to use as a target," Roberts said. Besides, he said, there are existing laws that could be enforced to prevent more garbage in the monument. "I don't think that closing it ... is the only solution," Roberts said. His group has also expressed concern that the plan would close land to off-road vehicles. The NRA, which estimated more than 60 target sites are currently used by target shooters in the monument, said the plan is "unacceptable." Other alternatives would leave part of the monument open. The NRA is urging shooters to attend upcoming public meetings to press for keeping as much land open as possible, in advance of a Nov. 25 deadline for public comment. The federal government is proposing a range of similar plans for two other areas in Colorado -- one in the northern part of the state and another to the west. In those cases, the Bureau of Land Management is looking to potentially close off certain areas to target shooting mainly over safety concerns, the bureau's Colorado spokesman David Boyd said. He said the plans were last completed in 1984, and people are using the land much more than they used to -- for camping, recreational vehicle use, walking their dogs and other things. The plan for the Colorado River Valley area in the western part of the state covers 500,000 acres; the other plan, for Kremmling and other areas in the north, covers 378,000 acres. Boyd said most of that would remain open to target shooters, but certain areas should be closed off. "It's definitely a safety concern that we need to address," he said. In Colorado and elsewhere, shooters already have to follow certain rules, like keeping a safe distance from campgrounds and roads and other populated areas. Federal officials stressed that the proposals are not final and urged concerned citizens to weigh in as the agency works on the plans into next year. The deadline for comment in Colorado is Dec. 16. NRA spokeswoman Rachel Parsons expressed concern that bureau was not offering new sites for target shooters to make up for the ones that could be closed. "We would prefer them not be closed," she said. "We don't want to see that happen." ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Oct 2011 10:19:52 -0700 (PDT) From: Vladyslav Strashko Subject: Re: Beware of hang-fires! - VIDEO Rule: never point gun to your body. That's why I know that unqualified person wrote PROVE SAFE procedures that requires to look into barrel. From: Jim Pook To: [Firearms Digest] Sent: Saturday, October 15, 2011 5:51 AM Subject: Beware of hang-fires! - VIDEO If you are this stupid, just put the gun down and step away! Beware of hang-fires! - VIDEO: http://www.apacheclips.com/media/35989/Man_nearly_shoots_himself_in_head/ Jim Pook Vancouver Island-North Obama.The reason stupid people shouldn't vote! - Bumper Sticker Government is a disease masquerading as it's own cure. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, October 15, 2011 11:24 am From: "Dennis & Hazel Young" Subject: CBC - Environmentalist shocked by caribou shooting CBC - Environmentalist shocked by caribou shooting Caribou on the edge of extinction in Ontario, Wildlands League says CBC News Last Updated: Oct 14, 2011 2:46 PM ET http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/story/2011/10/14/tby-caribou-shot.html An environmental group is calling for serious consequences for the hunter who shot and killed a caribou near Marathon on Thanksgiving weekend. The Wildlands League said the person should be charged under the Endangered Species Act. Fines under that act can be up to 10 times higher than a typical hunting violation. Anna Baggio, a spokesperson with the group, which is a chapter of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, said the animals are on the verge of extinction in Ontario. "It's a little surprising to me that someone would shoot and kill a caribou," she said. It's surprising to the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters too. 'A very rare occurrence' Lezlie Goodwin, manager of communications with the organization, said about 10,000 hunters are out harvesting moose or deer in Ontario right now, without incident. "[It's] very unfortunate, whenever an animal is harvested unintentionally," she said. "But thankfully, given hunter education and diligence on the part of most hunters, [it's] a very rare occurrence." Baggio said this case is an opportunity to further educate hunters. "If we can encourage [hunters], especially newer hunters or less experienced hunters, to go out and learn the species that they would like to hunt . things like this [may not] happen in the future." The Ministry of Natural resources said it's still investigating the incident. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Oct 2011 11:26:20 -0600 From: "Joe Gingrich" Subject: What Are We Paying For? http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/republicans-advance-bill-targeting-us-funding-un-what-are-we-paying Republicans Advance Bill Targeting US Funding for UN: 'What Are We Paying For?' By Patrick Goodenough October 14, 2011 A U.S. House committee Thursday approved a bill linking U.S. contributions to the United Nations to significant financial and other reforms, one day after Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned she would recommend that President Obama veto the measure if it reaches his desk. Deeply divided along party lines, the House Foreign Relations Committee voted 23-15 for the U.N. Transparency, Accountability, and Reform Act (H.R. 2829), whose most radical provision aims to force the U.N. to change its funding mechanism from the current system of "assessed" contributions to voluntary ones. Proponents say this would allow the U.S. - and other member states - to fund only those activities and agencies it regards as being efficiently managed, and in the national interest. In order to compel the U.N. to make the shift, the legislation would withhold 50 percent of the U.S. assessed contributions to the regular budget (which does not include peacekeeping) if the U.N. has not moved at least 80 percent of the budget to voluntary funding within two years. American taxpayers account for 22 percent of the U.N.'s regular operating budget and 27 percent of the separate peacekeeping budget in "assessed" dues. In addition the U.S. provides billions of dollars in voluntary contributions for various U.N. agencies. In FY 2010 the total U.S. contribution was $7.69 billion. Conservatives critical of the U.N. have long advocated the U.S. using its leverage, as the biggest funder by far, to push the world body to reform - and to weaken efforts by hostile member-states to use the U.N. to harm American interests. The bill's author, committee chairwoman Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.), told Thursday's markup hearing that the U.N. budget continues to climb. "What are we paying for?" she asked, then cited repressive regimes' membership on the Human Rights Council, a continuing anti-Israel bias, the elevation of member states like North Korea and Iran to leadership positions in various bodies, and corruption scandals. "Why do we bear the financial burden for this?" Ros-Lehtinen continued. "Every year, scores of member countries that contribute almost nothing to the U.N. vote together to pass the budget. Then they pass the costs on to big donors like the U.S., which is assessed a whopping 22 percent. "In contrast, China pays just three percent. We need a game-changer." The committee's top Democrat, Rep. Howard Berman, said the "real agenda" behind the bill was to end U.S. participation in the U.N. and to "deal a fatal financial blow to the world body." He argued that there was no evidence to support the notion that withholding dues can leverage meaningful change. "Previous attempts at withholding did not lead to any significant and lasting reforms - they only succeeded in weakening our diplomatic standing and influence, and undermining efforts to promote transparency, fiscal responsibility and good management practices in the U.N. system," Berman told the committee. 'A dangerous retreat' If the bill does pass in the House - where it has 125 co-sponsors, all Republican - its passage through the Democrat-controlled Senate would be an uphill battle. Even if it did make it through the Senate, its chances of making it into law are slim. In a letter to Ros-Lehtinen on Wednesday, Clinton expressed strong opposition to the measure, saying if it reached the president, she would recommend a veto. Citing U.N. missions in Iraq and Afghanistan as examples, she argued that international engagement through the U.N. comes at a fraction of the cost of acting alone. "This bill also represents a dangerous retreat from the longstanding, bipartisan focus of the United States on constructive engagement within the United Nations to galvanize collective action to tackle urgent security problems," she wrote. "If we act to diminish our global stature, the United States would surrender a key platform from which to shape international priorities, such as obtaining tough sanctions on Iran." During the hearing, Ros-Lehtinen referred to Clinton's letter, and in particular the suggestion that the legislation could harm U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan because other countries would not share the burden by paying for U.N. missions in those countries. "Does the administration have such little faith in our allies and in our diplomacy - which they pride themselves on - to think that they would not share the burden of fighting Islamist extremists unless the U.N. forced them to?" she asked. On the eve the markup hearing, the U.N. Foundation released results of a poll in which 64 percent of respondents said they supported the U.S. "paying our dues to the U.N. on time and in full" while 31 percent said they opposed this. The poll also found 55 percent of respondents were not in favor of legislation that would cut U.S. funding of the U.N., while 39 percent favored it. The wording of the question on the proposed legislation said that it "cuts fifty percent of the United States' funding to the United Nations," "ends United States' funding to UNICEF and the World Health Organization" and "ends United States' funding of United Nations' agencies that respond and take action after a natural disaster or humanitarian crisis." The poll wording did not say that 50 percent of U.S. funding would only be cut if the U.N. failed to shift from an assessed to voluntary payment mechanism. Neither did the wording make clear that funding to agencies like UNICEF would only end if those agencies fail to provide the U.S. Comptroller General with a certificate of transparency, or to comply with that certification. The U.N. Foundation was set up in 1998 with a $1 billion donation to U.N. causes by CNN founder and philanthropist Ted Turner. Its priorities include building public support for the U.N. and advocating U.S. funding for the U.N. "At a time when the United Nations is more relevant than ever in addressing the world's greatest peace and security challenges, this survey is evidence that voters believe in the value of the United Nations to American interests," U.N. Foundation president Timothy Wirth said in a statement on the poll. ------------------------------ End of Cdn-Firearms Digest V14 #717 *********************************** Submissions: mailto:cdn-firearms-digest@scorpion.bogend.ca Mailing List Commands: mailto:majordomo@scorpion.bogend.ca Moderator's email: mailto:owner-cdn-firearms@scorpion.bogend.ca List owner: mailto:owner-cdn-firearms@scorpion.bogend.ca FAQ list: http://www.canfirearms/Skeeter/Faq/cfd-faq1.html Web Site: http://www.canfirearms.ca CFDigest Archives: http://www.canfirearms.ca/archives To unsubscribe from _all_ the lists, put the next four lines in a message and mailto:majordomo@scorpion.bogend.ca unsubscribe cdn-firearms-digest unsubscribe cdn-firearms-chat unsubscribe cdn-firearms end (To subscribe, use "subscribe" instead of "unsubscribe".)